National Highways Praised for Strong Performance but ORR Warns RIS3 Will Be the Real Test

Roads operator meets most interim targets, but regulator says bigger investment programme will demand stronger planning, tighter governance and improved delivery discipline

National Highways has been commended for delivering the majority of its operational and investment commitments during the latest transitional funding period, but the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) has warned that significantly greater challenges lie ahead as the organisation prepares to deliver the third Road Investment Strategy (RIS3).

In its latest annual assessment, covering the period from April 2025 to March 2026, the regulator concluded that National Highways continued to perform strongly across much of England's Strategic Road Network, achieving nine of the Government's 11 key performance indicators while delivering almost all planned capital investment.

However, the report also highlights emerging concerns around programme readiness, with several critical preparatory schemes for RIS3 falling behind schedule—a warning that comes as the scale of investment is set to increase dramatically over the next five years.

Strong Operational Performance

The ORR assessment paints a positive picture of National Highways' day-to-day operational performance during what was effectively a bridging year between road investment periods.

Key targets were achieved across several important performance measures, including:

• Motorway incident clearance times

• Network availability

• Road surface condition

• Roadworks information

• Journey reliability

• Customer satisfaction

The organisation also delivered all four of its enhancement commitments and achieved or exceeded seven of its eight renewals output targets, demonstrating continued resilience while preparing for the transition into RIS3.

Preparations for RIS3 Raise Concerns

Despite these successes, the regulator identified a number of areas where preparation for the next investment period has not progressed at the pace originally intended.

Particular concern centred on the development of a programme of 12 major renewal schemes intended to be delivered during RIS3.

According to the report, National Highways underspent around £37 million, representing approximately 33% of the funding allocated to prepare these schemes.

Progress was also slower than expected on the development of future concrete road renewal projects.

Of the 15 schemes scheduled to reach design stage ahead of RIS3, only one achieved the planned milestone during the reporting period, contributing to a further underspend of around £31 million—approximately 41% of the allocated budget.

The regulator also highlighted ongoing challenges within National Highways' technology renewal programme, including slower progress replacing roadside signs and lower-than-expected delivery of CCTV and traffic signal upgrades.

A Bigger Challenge Awaits

The report makes clear that these delays come at a particularly important time.

RIS3 will represent the largest renewals programme ever undertaken on England's Strategic Road Network, with planned renewals investment increasing by more than 70% compared with RIS2.

Funding is expected to rise from around £4.9 billion during RIS2 to approximately £8.4 billion under RIS3, dramatically increasing both the scale and complexity of the organisation's delivery programme.

The ORR believes that without stronger planning and earlier scheme development, the risk of delays and delivery pressures could increase significantly once the new investment period begins.

Stronger Governance Required

While recognising National Highways' operational achievements, the regulator has called on the organisation to strengthen programme management before RIS3 gathers pace.

The ORR wants National Highways to demonstrate more robust governance arrangements, tighter programme controls and clearer evidence that it can successfully manage the substantially larger investment programme while continuing to deliver value for taxpayers and road users.

Graham Richards, Director of Planning and Performance at the Office of Rail and Road, acknowledged the progress made during the interim year but warned that the next investment period will require a significant step-change in delivery capability.

He said National Highways had performed well against the majority of its interim commitments, but stressed that RIS3 represents a much more demanding challenge requiring improved planning and stronger oversight of major renewals programmes.

A Defining Investment Period

The assessment arrives at a pivotal moment for England's strategic roads operator.

With increasing pressure to renew ageing infrastructure, improve network resilience, embrace new technology and support economic growth, RIS3 is expected to be the most ambitious road investment programme since the creation of National Highways.

The ORR's latest report suggests the foundations are in place, but also serves as a reminder that successfully delivering an £8.4 billion renewals programme will depend not only on funding, but on robust planning, disciplined programme management and the ability to bring increasingly complex infrastructure projects to fruition.

As RIS3 begins, the focus will shift from preparing for investment to proving that the organisation can deliver one of the largest highways renewal programmes ever undertaken in England.